The film then is sloppy and contrived; it’s an unoriginal and uninspiring thriller that’s let down by flabby writing.

The matter-of-factness with which brutal acts are interspersed through this film, and the zest with which they are carried out, made me think that this must be a copy of some Hollywood film. But the rest of it is weighed down with childhood angst in a very European fashion.

Is this film more interesting than a documentary of the same actors having lunch? The answer is no.

John Day fails as a thriller. I suppose it had a run time of approximately two hours, but it felt more like five.

John Day initially gives an impression that it’s all about decoding a puzzle or unravelling a mystery at breakneck speed. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. It’s gripping but like the characters, the plot is way too ambiguous, deceitful and tedious for your liking.

A muddled affair, John Day seems lost in its own maze of self-indulgence.

From the trailer, I expected John Day to be a marvel of sorts but with deceiving story that runs off track for most part, the film is too ambiguous. Though Naseeruddin Shah’s acting helps, the film revels in morbidity and audaciously flaunts its comatose story. Frankly I was terrorized by this arid movie’s drabness. I went in hoping for so much and came out thinking how bad will it be if I mark this film a zero. However, I finally settled for 1/5 for John Day. The best thing that happened to me all day was that the film finally got over after what felt like light years.

Incomplete, boring and confusing comes easily to the mind when describing the film. All in all, a bland thriller.

While the film keeps you reasonably interested in the first half, it still moves like a driver on a highway who refuses to move into top gear. The plot which tries to be too smart for its own good falls apart considerably, later.

If there is a sole reason to watch this film, it is Naseeruddin Shah.

Inspired by Box 507 (Spain, 2002), John Day is a slow, cumbersome watch that takes too much time to tell too little.